Bay State Single-Family Home And Condo Sales Decrease In July

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Tune in as Cassidy Murphy, editorial director of The Warren Group, discusses the decrease in single-family home and condo sales in the Bay State during the month of July. Listen here.

Sales of Massachusetts single-family homes and condos posted a decrease in July while median prices for both increased, according to the latest report by The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.

A total of 5,688 single-family homes statewide sold in July, down 4.2 percent from the 5,940 sold during the same month last year. This marked the first time sales have decreased in the month of July since 2010 when there was a 27.6 percent decrease year-over-year. From January to July, sales were down 2.3 percent, with 26,965 homes sold in Massachusetts compared with 27,602 during the same period in 2013.

“The decrease in single-family home and condo sales is discouraging, and the limited inventory is definitely a factor,” said Cassidy Murphy, editorial director of The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman. “The rise in the median selling price for both single-family homes and condos indicates that good inventory is selling quickly and at a good price. There just isn’t a lot of it.”

The median price of a single-family home rose 1.7 percent in July, increasing to $355,000 from $349,000 a year earlier. This was the 22nd consecutive month of year-over-year median price increases, and the fifth consecutive month this year that prices exceeded $300,000. The median price for homes sold January through July was $335,000, up 4.7 percent from $320,050 in the prior year.

Condominium sales also decreased in July, falling 4.3 percent from a year earlier. A total of 2,235 condos sold in July, down from 2,336 a year ago. Year-to-date, condo sales were up 6.7 percent, increasing to 11,827 from 11,080 during the same period last year.

The median condo price rose 5.5 percent in July. The median selling price was $327,000, up from $310,000 a year earlier. The year-to-date median price of condos in the Bay State was $315,000, up 8.6 percent from $290,000 a year ago.